Drop box lifting lever for looms



June 30, 1959 L. PAYTON DROP BOX LIFTING LEVER FOR LOOMS Filed May 19, 1958 NR w ya/e for Zui/Ie) l Payfoh i 44M ATTORNEYS 2,892,469 DROP BOX LIFTING LEVER FOR LooMs Luther L. Payton, Albany, Ga.

Application May 19, 1958, Serial No. 736,272 10 Claims. (Cl. 139-181) The present invention relates to-drop box lifting lever for looms.

Reference is made to my prior Patent 2,301,077, granted November 3, 1942, entitled Lever for Loom Box Lifting Mechanism which dealt with a somewhat similar problem although in a substantially different manner.

The box motion on the box loom carries the different colors of filling, such boxes having up to four cells to take care of four shuttles for the four different kinds of filling. When the loom is in operation and as the different fillings are called for in thepattern weaving, the gearing on the loom is so set to make the proper shift of the box so that the proper filling will be introduced at the proper time and place. In the conventional construction a lever is used for the lifting of the box called the drop box lifting'lever. During the operation of the loom the box lifting mechanism often hangs r sticks, at which times the lifting lever being rigidly entrained therewith and with the gearing referred to breaks.

To overcome this breakage in this lever, the present invention proposes an improved construction of lever with a breach to enable the lever to give way under a certain load or tension equal to that developed when the boxes hang or stick.

Although when a breach occurs one member or section of the lifting lever will automatically move out of alignment with the other member or section, it is an object of the invention to preserve at all times the vertical alignment between the two members or sections so that, although one section moves into and out of horizontal alignment with the other section of the lever the vertical alignment is always preserved between the two sections which facilitates the rotary movement of the breach section with reference to the long or main lever section to the end that the members of the lever will not bind but will move smoothly relatively to one another to the end that the incidental movements relatively between the sections of the lever will remain operative at all times and faithful in the performance of, their intended purposes and objects.

With the device according to my prior'patent, when a breach occurs between the sections of the lifting lever, the loom continues to run. The loom boxes are ordinarily four in number, each one containing a different color of thread that is being made into the cloth. When a breach occurs on any of the four boxes, the boxes always drop down to the number 1 box and thus the continued running of the loom will act to constantly feed the same color into the cloth and the pattern will be thereby destroyed. This condition will continue until one of the loom laborers discovers it in going his rounds. There is quite a bit of work involved when this happens because each thread must be pulled out by hand resulting in the making of a second grade of cloth. With the loom stoppage production of the loom is also lost for this time period.

It is accordingly another object of the invention to 2,892,469 Patented J une 30, 1 959 2. eliminate the condition described in the immediately preceding paragraph by shutting off the power to the loom at the time a breach occurs. In connection with this point, the lever is substantially revised in order to accommodate a switch carried by one section and in operative position to the other section so that the switch is caused to open when the breach occurs thus opening the circuit to the power motor.

It is also a further object of the invention to provide an automatic shutoff switch in conjunction with a breach lever so constructed and arranged that the loom operator in resetting the box lever sections will start the loom back to production without any serious damage to machinery or cloth.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention will be more fully described hereinafter,- and will be more particularly pointed out in the claims appended hereto.

In the drawings, wherein like symbols refer to like or corresponding parts throughout the several views.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a loom of a well known variety illustrating a drop box lifting lever constructed in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 2 is a side elevational view, taken on an enlarged scale of the lever apart from the loom and in the normal unbreached condition.

Figure 3 is a top edge view of the same.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary side view of the lever shown in the breached condition.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary top edge view of the lever taken on a much magnified scale with partsbroken away and parts shown in section.

Referring more particularly to the drawings 10 designates the frame of a Crompton and Knowles loom, as

an example of any conventional or customary loom,

having a lay 11 and drop boxes 12, mounted to swing about a rock shaft 13 and actuated by connecting rods 14 from a crank shaft 15 in the usual manner. The drop boxes are mounted upon a lifter rod 16 guided for vertical movement in a lower hearing or bracket 17 and connected with the improved drop box lifting lever in any suitable manner. The give-away link or connection 18 is that shown in the Patent No. 1,679,616, but is not necessary in the present instance, the same being used for purposes of illustration only as indicating one form of connection between the drop box lifting lever and the lifter rod 16. A pin 19 in the lifter rod or other connection engages through a slot 20 in the free end portion of one member 21 of the improved drop box lifting lever, of which the other member is indicated at 22. The member 22 may be designated as the main member or rear long member, while the member 21 is the forward short member or the breach member. The main member 22 has a bearing 23 for a stud 24 on which the lever rocks.

As shown in Figures 2 and 3 a hole 25 is made in the rear end portion of the main lever section 22 for the purpose of receiving a set screw of a counterweight 28. Spaced from the hole 25 is a slot 26 to receive the link connection 27 to the pattern mechanism.

The lever of this invention has overlapping parts 29, 30 and 31 with mutual fiat faces on which the members may with facility rotate with respect to one another about the pivot bolt 32' having the head 33 at one end and the nut 34 at the other end, the head 33 taking against one member, for instance 31 of the bifurcated end of the lever section 21 while the nut 34 takes against the opposite leg 30. The bolt 32 passes through registering holes'm'ade in the parts 29, 30 and 31, such holes being made in the legs 30 and 31 near the ends thereof while the hole through the member 22 is made at considerable'distance from the terminal end 41' thereof;

The mutual flat faces are indicated at 35 and 36. The flat faces 35 are between an outer surface of the part 29 and the inner surface of the leg 30; while the flat faces 36 are between the opposite surface of the part 29 and the inner surface of the leg 31. Consequently, these surfaces and 36 oppose one another in resisting any lateral deviation of the lever section 21 with respect to the lever sectlon 22 in a vertical sense. The overlapped part 29 of the long section 22 of the lever preferably terminates in a tapered tip end 37 which is in part the result of a sloping surface 38 (Fig. 5) made from the mutual fiat faces 35 downwardly toward the tip end 37, the outer portion of which is spaced from the adjacent inner face of the leg 30. The tip end 37 is formed with outwardly convergent side Walls 39 and 40 leading to the fiat free end wall 41.

The tip end 37 is formed with a socket 42 which may be in the section of a sphere. Such socket 42 opens out through the outer surface of the tip end 37 into the space between this outer surface and the adjacent inner wall of the leg 30 which is formed by this sloping surface 38.

A reciprocating locking bolt 43 has a rounded free end adapted to occupy the socket 42 in the locked straight line position of the members 21 and 22. A collar 44 is fitted to the bolt 43 and held at a suitable axial position thereon by a set screw 45 or the like. The bolt 43 is accommodated in a cylinder 46 which also houses a coil spring 47 wound in a suitable number of convolutions around the bolt 43. The spring 47 abuts at one end against the collar 44 and at its other end against an adjusting member 48 which may advantageously be in the form of a hollow nut fitted slidably over the locking bolt 43 and adjustably screw threaded into the outer open end of the cylinder 46. A large hexagonal or other appropriately shaped head 50 of the nut 48 enables the convenient rotation thereof in e4i7ther direction for adjusting the tension on the coil spring The collar 44 is designed to engage against a stop shoulder 51 on the cylinder block or housing 52 which incases the bolt 43 and the coil spring 47.

An electric switch 58 is accommodated within the bifurcated portion of the lever member 21 outwardly of the tip 41 and has leads 54 to include the switch in the electric power circuit of the loom. A switch arm 55 is arranged in the path of the tip end 37 so as to be engaged by said tip end in the straight line position of the lever sections so as to shift the switch to a circuit-closed position. The switch 53 is spring-biased to an open position so that when the lever is breached and assumes the position shown in Figure 4 the tip end 37 is withdrawn from the switch arm 55 releasing the switch to its internal spring mechanism which will automatically open the circuit of the loom resulting in stoppage thereof.

It will be understood from the foregoing by those skilled in the art that the bifurcated legs 30, 31 of the lever member 21 create a double overlap which will maintain both members of the lever in proper alignment in a vertical sense. In other words, these levers will maintain their vertical alined position at all times. Member 22 of the lever always remains in this fixed vertical position but when a breach occurs member 21 with a single overlap as in the case of the prior patent is apt to get out of alignment.

In operation when the box lifting mechanism hangs or sticks, the lever will be breached to substantially the position shown in Figure 4. Ordinarily the lever is held in v the straight position of Figure 2 wherein the locking bolt 43 occupies the socket 42. The tension of the coil spring 47 therefore regulates the point at which the lever will be breached. As pressure is put upon the member 21 and as such pressure exceeds the load of the spring 47 the 1 member 21 will be rotated about the bolt 32, the lower rounded end of the bolt 43 riding upwardly and outwardly from the socket 42 and it may ride outwardly beyond the tip end 37 of the interleaved part 29 whereupon the spring 47 will again force the bolt 43 downwardly until the collar 44 encounters the shoulder 51. The collar 44 may be adjusted axially along the length of the bolt 43 to an appropriate position to regulate the degree of projection of the rounded inner end inwardly beyond the inner surface of the bifurcated leg 30. The collar 44 will prevent the bolt being projected all the way through the member 30 when a breach occurs and when the bolt is moved out of the confines of the interleaved part 29.

The device requires the bolt to be reset every time a breach occurs and this will keep the loom operator in close touch with the loom. By rotating the nut 48 in one direction the spring 47 may be compressed to increase the tension on the bolt 43. By rotating the nut 48 in the opposite direction the tension may be eased from the spring 47 thus lessening the degree of thrust required to cause a breach in the lever.

When a breach occurs the switch will automatically shut-off the power from the loom resulting in prompt stoppage of the loom and in so doing all tension will be relieved and this condition will prevent the boxes from dropping down to the number 1 box while the loom keeps running which has heretofore resulted in making a wrong cloth.

It will be noted that when a breach occurs it is on the axial line of the bolt 32 and not on the axial line of the bolt 43. The distance between the axial lines 32 and 43 is such that substantial leverage is developed to shift the bolt 43 out of the socket 42 when breach conditions occur.

Accordingly with the invention the loom operator may set his box lever and start the loom back to production without any serious damage to the loom or to the cloth.

Although I have disclosed herein the best form of the invention known to me at this time, I reserve the right to all such modifications and changes as may come within the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A drop box lifting lever for looms comprising at least two sections pivoted together and having double overlapped parts adjacent the pivotal point, said parts having mutual contacting substantially flat faces on which the sections bear incident to the relative rotary movement about the pivot point, and means for loading the sections against breaching up to a preselected limit.

2. A drop box lifting lever for looms comprising at least two sections constituting said lever pivoted together one section having a bifurcated portion straddling an interleaved end of the other section, the bifurcated legs having substantially flat surfaces engaging opposed substantially fiat surfaces of the interleaved intermediate part for maintaining the two sections in substantial vertical alignment irrespective of the straight or breached condition of the lever, and means for yieldably stressing the sections against breach up to a predetermined limit.

3. A drop box lifting lever for looms comprising at least two sections constituting the lever, one section having bifurcated legs spaced apart, the other section having an interleaved end portion inserted between the legs and having bearing surfaces upon the inner faces of the legs, a pivot extending in common through the legs and the interleaved part on which the two sections may relatively rotate, and yieldable means for maintaining the sections in straight line position up to a preselected thrust component tending to breach the same.

4. A drop box lifting lever for looms comprising at least two sections constituting the lever pivoted together,

and yieldable means oif center with respect to the pivot and arranged between the two sections for yieldably holding the two sections in substantially straight line position up to a predetermined elastic limit.

5. A drop box lifting lever for looms comprising at least two sections constituting the lever pivoted together, and means for yieldably holding the sections together in a straight line condition, said means comprising a socket in one member, a bolt movably carried by the other section and having an end adapted to engage the socket, means for yieldably projecting the bolt into the socket, and means for adjusting the tension of the spring means.

6. A drop box lifting lever for looms comprising at least two sections constituting said lever pivoted together for relative swinging movement, a socket carried by one section, a movable locking bolt carried by the other section having an end adapted in the straight line position to register with and enter said socket, stop means for limiting the projecting movement of the locking bolt, means for yieldably urging the locking bolt to the fully projected position permitted by said stop means, and adjusting means for adjusting the tension of said last named means.

7. A drop box lifting lever for looms comprising at least two sections constituting the lever pivoted together for relative swinging movement, a tapered tip portion on the free end of one of the sections, a socket in such tapered tip portion, a bolt movably carried by the other section and having an end portion arranged to enter said socket in the straight line position of the sections, said bolt having a rounded free nose to engage tapered portions of said tip to cause riding of the bolt to a position where it may enter the socket, and means for imposing an adjustable elastic tension upon said bolt in the direction of the socket.

8. A drop box lifting lever for looms comprising at least two sections constituting the lever having relatively overlapped parts pivoted together, two of the parts straddling an interleaved part, said interleaved part having a sloping wall and a tapered tip end extending oflf the lower portion of the sloping wall, a socket in the tapered tip end, a slidable locking bolt mounted in the other section and having a free end adapted to enter the socket and to extend across the gap between the tapered tip end and the adjacent inner surface of the adjoining bifurcated part, means for limiting the degree of projection of the bolt toward the socket, means for yieldably stressing the bolt to projected position in the socket in the straight line position of the lever sections, said tip end having convergent side faces adapted to engage the bolt in the closing movement of the sections from the breached to the straight line position for causing the bolt to ride outwardly to clear the side of the tip end and arrive in ultimate registry with the socket in the straight line position of the sections.

9. A drop box lifiing lever for looms comprising at least two sections constituting the lever pivoted together, a switch arranged in the loom power circuit carried by one member and having a switch operating lever extending into the path of movement of the other member, and means for yieldably holding the sections in normal straight line condition with the circuit closed to a predetermined limit whereupon said means Will yield and permit the breaching of the levers and the opening of the switch involving prompt stoppage of the loom.

10. A drop box lifting lever for looms comprising at least two sections constituting the lever pivoted together one of the sections having spaced bifurcated legs, the other section having an interleaved part between and bearing upon said legs, a pivot connecting the legs and the interleaved part, means for yieldably holding the sections in'substantially straight line normal condition but adapted to yield at a preselected thrust value. an electric switch biased to an open position and included in the power circuit of the loom, said switch accommodated between the legs of the bifurcated section and having a part extending into the path of the interleaved section for closing the switch in the straight line position of the sections.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

